Van Common School

In 1916, Swindall and Spring Hill Schools were consolidated to form Van Common School. Money raised with a bond election and state aid enabled the district to build a new school on five acres less than one mile east of Van. In order to reduce costs, community members agreed to haul at no expense 114 wagon loads of construction materials to the building site from the railhead at Grand Saline, 13 miles away. The school opened with 95 students and four teachers: Prof. E.C. Tunnell, Prof. E.R. Tunnell, Miss Eula Fowler and Miss Lucy Brawner. The school served the needs of the community until a May 1928 fire destroyed the building. A June ballot measure approved the issuance of bonds in the amount of $3,000. This amount and the $3,500 insurance payment enabled the district to rebuild a school that was ready for the start of the 1928-1929 school year at the same site. The 1929-1930 school year began with 90 pupils. However, the discovery of oil on October 14, 1929, less than a mile from the school, dramatically changed the school district as well as the entire community. School administrators and board members knew that they needed to plan ahead for massive community growth. Another contribution to the disruptions in the school district’s operations was the oil drilling on school property, approximately 500 feet from the building. The school building was temporarily moved to an adjacent site, but an election was held in 1931 in order to secure funding for a greatly expanded school site to accommodate the population explosion that occurred as a result of the discovery of oil in Van.

Van Common School is a historical marker in Van, Van Zandt County, dedicated in 2010. It is one of 84 historical markers documented in Van Zandt County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 167 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.5253, -95.6300 near Van. The nearest cataloged historic site is Van School, 1929-1947 (historical marker), about 0.1 miles away. Others within a short drive include Swindall School, Van United Methodist Church, and Jarman No. 1 Discovery Well.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507016395. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.